tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4445844569294316288.post8992648053367813370..comments2016-12-05T13:04:31.334-08:00Comments on TOM CLARK: W. H. Hudson: A Friendly RatZephirinenoreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4445844569294316288.post-66606581342664119912010-05-16T02:22:43.856-07:002010-05-16T02:22:43.856-07:00Yes, Z, patient almost to the point of sedate (if ...Yes, Z, patient almost to the point of sedate (if not sedated).<br /><br />Now you have me looking a rat tails, these past days, I see what you mean.<br /><br />Perhaps it&#39;s the lack of fur. Imagine how one might draw back for at least a moment even from our dearest felines, were they to appear one morning with tails clean shorn.TChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915822857461178942noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4445844569294316288.post-57380490490024332702010-05-15T15:47:47.218-07:002010-05-15T15:47:47.218-07:00The tails are not nice. Though I suppose they&#39...The tails are not nice. Though I suppose they&#39;re no nastier than the average human elbow, or that bit at the back of one&#39;s heel.Zephirinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02809525772159756122noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4445844569294316288.post-35602137708956773332010-05-15T15:43:35.554-07:002010-05-15T15:43:35.554-07:00No, I think I believe the story, animals do form o...No, I think I believe the story, animals do form odd alliances. I had a neighbour once whose little dog used to play with the young foxes in the park every evening. I just think this was a cat of abnormal patience.Zephirinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02809525772159756122noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4445844569294316288.post-59884394925884998692010-05-14T02:13:01.550-07:002010-05-14T02:13:01.550-07:00Zeph,
Or ours!
Were it not for the absolute fait...Zeph,<br /><br />Or ours!<br /><br />Were it not for the absolute faith and trust I place in the veracity of Hudson&#39;s observations of things natural, I&#39;d have been tempted to think he made this up... but no, I will not think that.<br /><br />Must confess, by the way, that my recent sightings of rats have been somewhat affected by lingering considerations of your earlier comment about being a bit disturbed by <a href="http://tomclarkblog.blogspot.com/2010/02/sweet-thing-rat.html" rel="nofollow">the tails</a>. I fear I shall never again be able to look at a rat front-end-first, after that.TChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915822857461178942noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4445844569294316288.post-62868928866227922092010-05-13T16:48:08.407-07:002010-05-13T16:48:08.407-07:00That cat was a great deal more patient than any of...That cat was a great deal more patient than any of mine would have been!<br /><br />I love the description of Hudson writing as the grass grows. Perfectly apt.Zephirinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02809525772159756122noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4445844569294316288.post-53173678944904954782010-05-12T06:03:37.171-07:002010-05-12T06:03:37.171-07:00I dearly love Hudson. Brilliant naturalist, great ...I dearly love Hudson. Brilliant naturalist, great writer. To do and write the things he did, one could die knowing one had lived.<br /><br />And I like rats, too. Sort of. Depending on the circumstances. Not sure I would want their help with shaving.TChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05915822857461178942noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4445844569294316288.post-87273373612765250052010-05-11T18:45:24.234-07:002010-05-11T18:45:24.234-07:00Important to remember that on the species tree, sc...Important to remember that on the species tree, scientists believe that all mammals derive ultimately from a kind of rodent not unlike the rat. Our common ancestor still lives among us--rather as the birds, which are the descendants of dinosaurs, do--perhaps as a reminder of how humble our beginnings are.<br /><br />Actually, rats aren&#39;t the horrible creatures they&#39;re commonly thought to be. They apparently make decent pets. Soft-bodied, with little claws that are rather prehensile.Curtis Favillehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06213075853354387634noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4445844569294316288.post-66526878769647677002010-05-11T17:34:23.788-07:002010-05-11T17:34:23.788-07:00Wow. For me, these, my first encounters with Huds...Wow. For me, these, my first encounters with Hudson, were quite a discovery. Thank you. I never knew.<br /><br />I read these pieces at the end of a long day of driving, meeting, talking, hassling and driving some more. I tried to frame my own thoughts, but then came across the Conrad quotation you published last year, which expressed most of what I was thinking better than I could ever do:<br /><br />&quot;One cannot tell how this fellow gets his effects; he writes as the grass grows. It is as if some very fine and gentle spirit were whispering to him the sentences he puts down on the paper. A privileged being.&quot;<br /><br />Reading these Hudson excerpts (today’s three and your adaptation) reminds me why I love to read and what great writers give their readers. <br /><br />And I actually think I’ll sleep better tonight for having read them.Curtis Robertsnoreply@blogger.com